New Delhi: Member of Parliament from Nandyal constituency in Andhra Pradesh and Jana Sena Party candidate for this year, S P Y. Reddy passed away at a hospital in Hyderabad last night at the age of 68, agencies reported.

Reddy was hospitalised early this month. He contested first phase election on April 11 from hospital bed.

Elected to Lok Sabha on Congress ticket from Nandyal in 2004 and 2009, Reddy won the 2014 election as YSR Congress nominee, but switched to the ruling TDP soon after the polls. As the TDP leadership denied him the Nandyal ticket this time, Reddy joined the Jana Sena Party and fought the April 11 election from the hospital bed.

Reddy, a mechanical engineer, began his career as a scientific officer in the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre before setting up his own plastics industry. The industry grew into the Nandi Group over the years and he became popular as "Nandi pipes Reddy".

Initially Reddy began his career with BJP and contested the Nandyal Lok Sabha election in 1991 but could not win.

Jana Sena chief Pawan Kalyan condoled Reddy’s death and hailed him as a dignified leader.

Andhra CM N Chandrababu Naidu, also condoled the MP’s death in a statement.